The Grand Gacha of Talent
by guillotineghosties
Summary: Wherever he went, it wouldn't be Hope's Peak. Wherever he went, he wouldn't have a talent. He laid his head on his desk and idly stared out of his window, which provided a generous view of the brick wall of the apartment building next door. (Hinata's journey to being selected for the Kamukura Project; Komahina in later chapters)


It was that time of year again, and the message boards were blowing up in the dead of winter.

Hope's Peak had announced that they were scouting for the newest class, Class 77, and by early March there'd be an official roster posted to boast what great talent they'd found in not only Japan, but sometimes the rest of the world, too.

Hinata, in his third and final year of middle school, liked this time of year the best because there was a lot more activity online.

People were speculating, theorizing, spreading rumors…

Even though none of it was related to Hinata, and he was only spectating as someone with no chance of ever getting into HPA, it was...therapeutic.

Somewhat.

There was a sense of unity with the other posters, who no doubt were ordinary people like himself, that provided a small comfort to him.

It wasn't like he had friends at school, and he was a member of the go home club for most of his academic career.

Hinata never spoke much on the forums, anyway, and considering that they were all anonymous, few posters ever entered anything in the name fields. It was a distant camaraderie that Hinata was allowed, and he had no doubt that most of these people wouldn't find him interesting or want to talk to him outside of the virtual realm.

As Hinata currently clicked away at his keyboard, bag slung over the back of his chair, the door to his room shut, he browsed through the newest thread posts with a frown.

 _I wonder if the rumors about allowing an ordinary person to attend is true...the luck lottery, they're calling it...it would be nice to win something like that but I've got no luck at all…_

He sighed, already envious of whoever would win a place in the most prestigious school of all time.

 _That's like a one in a billion chance, so whoever wins would have to be lucky enough that it's considered a talent._

Of course, there was a chance it wasn't true at all.

One poster implied that whoever won wouldn't really win fairly, but instead it was a cover up for someone wealthy to pay to have their child enrolled.

Hinata scoffed at the idea.

Even if someone with all the money in the world paid for their kid to practice something from the time they were small be it sports, arts, music...it wouldn't equal talent.

Not to mention, HPA got subsidies from the government.

They didn't need money.

Everyone knew that.

There wasn't any announcement about it on the official HPA website, but there was something else-a hand written letter that had been scanned and splashed across the front page.

 _Attention to all who have admired our honorable establishment thus far,_

 _We appreciate your realizing how important it is to nourish the best talent in the world! And so, we would like to ask all fans who are entering their first year of high school in the upcoming semester to submit an essay on the subject: what does "talent" mean to you?_

 _One winner will be chosen to enroll in Hope's Peak, and we guarantee that the talent of their choosing will bestowed upon them!_

 _There is a submission free of 3,000 yen that will go towards school funds._

 _The deadline is February 28th._

 _Good luck and thank you for your participation._

 _Kirigiri Jin_

 _Headmaster of Hope's Peak Academy_

Hinata read it over again to make sure he was understanding.

Maybe this was what the other posters had been talking about? To enter into the raffle candidates apparently had to write in.

The submission fee would explain why some posters thought it was a cash grab.

He lightly tapped his index finger on the mouse.

 _I was going to go the bookstore tomorrow, but…_

Hinata was working with limited funds.

He wasn't often hired for any part time work, because other candidates always seemed much better suited, and his parents didn't have much allowance to give him.

But still, he had enough saved up to enter the contest.

 _There's no way I'll win, though…_

Besides, how was he supposed to write an essay about something he didn't have?

That was like asking a dog to write about climbing trees, and dogs don't even have opposable thumbs.

This contest would no doubt be a setup for further disappointment, and with exit exams coming up, Hinata didn't need the extra heartache.

He hadn't even started looking at high schools he might want to enter into, and he didn't want to think about it, because it wouldn't matter.

Wherever he went, it wouldn't be Hope's Peak. Wherever he went, he wouldn't have a talent.

He laid his head on his desk and idly stared out of his window, which provided a generous view of the brick wall of the apartment building next door.

Hinata shook his head and clicked back to the message boards tab.

Once he'd hopped on the train of thought that sent him on a tour of every possibility of a bleak, mundane future being forced into the working world with no remarkable talent to set him apart...Hinata wanted to just get it out.

He knew it wouldn't amount to anything, maybe other anons telling him to quit being a crybaby since they're all in the same boat.

But still, Hinata entered a post in the stickied thread.

 _Anonymous_

 _post 85641287_

 _Just looked at the site and saw the essay contest_

 _3,000 yen submission fee for something I won't win, anyway_

 _don't have talent, how am I supposed to write about it_

 _not even good at writing_

He'd told himself that he would close out of the tab after saying his piece, but some part of him had to know that was a lie, because if someone responded to him, he wanted to see it.  
Even if it was just that one person who went around replying "kill yourself peasant".

This was the most honest social interaction he got, anyway, considering anonymity gave way to sincerity.

Within a few minutes, he'd gotten the expected responses.

"Kill yourself peasant"

"Whaaa? That's not the raffle anon that must be something else there's no way to enter the raffle gg tho"

"Submission fee is bc they love money duh? Why are you surprised by this?"

But he did receive a lengthy response from a particular poster whose style seemed familiar.

He was sure he'd seen them posting before.

 _Anonymous_

 _Post 85641344_

 _85641287_

 _Anon, the entire point of the essay contest is to pick someone that doesn't have talent._

 _Someone as average and mediocre and unexceptional as your common mouse, no doubt straddling the line of hope at seeing others' achievements shine and despair because they're smart enough to realize their own lack of worth._

 _You sound depressed, because you realize that talent means everything and your lack of it makes you nothing._

 _So I say you should enter the contest. You sound perfect to enter it with how deep into despair you are. Hope's Peak is an amazing establishment they could turn you around if you won._

 _Besides, you want to enter, we all want to go to Hope's Peak._

 _If you don't, you'll regret it the rest of your life. But hey, I'm just a faceless person with no talent myself, don't listen to me!_

Hinata rolled his eyes and slouched back, opting to look at his dull white ceiling instead of the colorful assortment of red and mortar outside this time. His back hurt.

 _But still, for all of his self loathing, being called "perfect" to enter a contest…_

 _It's just a stranger on the internet, but he has a point...if I don't try, I'll regret it, even if it turns out to be a huge waste of money...which it likely will._

Hinata didn't want to get into too deep a conversation with this anon, and so he simply replied, "I think I will try it. Thanks."

 _Should I really, though…? Won't I just be more disappointed…?_

But he could imagine it: having something that he was exceptionally good at, that sense of pride swelling in his chest when adults and peers like would look surprised and say something like, "what a talented boy! He's going places!", and having his life set out for him.

And imagining it for just a second was all it ever took for reality to weigh all the more heavily.

Calling forth every lesson from manga and adventure books about "you never know unless you try" he could remember, and forcibly pushing his disbelief aside so that he could lie to himself, even for just a second that he had a chance; he opened a word processor and started typing.


End file.
